Sun Jian quickly dressed, settled the three women, and strode out of the house.

Surprisingly, when he pushed open the door, he wasn't met with panicked villagers, but rather with Lao Jiang, Lao Cao, Er Gou, Gou Sheng, and others looking excited.

Sun Jian was stunned.

What's going on?

Could it be that these people were scared out of their wits by another bandit attack on the village?

Cao Cao spoke first: "Sun Jian! Congratulations! This is great news! The imperial court has sent someone to deliver an imperial decree."

"Issue an imperial edict? What edict?" Sun Jian frowned and was stunned, clearly still not recovered from his confusion.

"Oh my, my brother, of course it's my doing to defy the Emperor's decree!" Old Cao's excitement was palpable.

He may not have eaten pork, but he's seen pigs run!

Years ago, Cao Cao had seen the imperial edict procession once in the county town. The scale and grandeur of it were unmistakable.

"Yes, Sun Jian, the villagers on lookout saw it clearly; that ceremonial guard was indeed from the imperial family! Who would dare impersonate the court these days!"

"If the imperial procession carrying the imperial decree came to our village, it couldn't be for you, could it be for me, Er Gou?"

"It can't be mine, Gou Sheng's!"

"Hahaha!"

Er Gou's words caused everyone to burst into laughter.

Sun Jian, however, was not so optimistic.

A number of questions suddenly popped into his mind.

It's only been a few days, how come my little trouble has alarmed Emperor Ganwu of the Great Gan Dynasty?

The emperor even issued an imperial edict specifically for himself?

Is it a blessing or a curse?

Sun Jian knew in his heart that even an imperial edict wasn't necessarily good news.

He had just beaten up Li Jian and dealt with the prefect Li Yigou a few days ago. So many days have passed, the matter must have been making a big fuss by now.

It's said that Li Yigou has a powerful figure backing him up; who knows, maybe that person is setting him up?

First, let the emperor know about his affairs, then persuade him to let him into the palace, and then find a way to eliminate him and take revenge.

Seeing Sun Jian frown, Old Jiang immediately understood Sun Jian's concerns and nudged him with his hand.

"Oh dear, Sun Jian, what are you thinking about?"

"The appearance of such a ceremonial guard is definitely a good thing. What bad thing would have such prestige? I, Old Jiang, am sure that this is because the imperial court wants you to be an official!"

"All right……"

Sun Jian nodded, realizing that he had indeed been overly suspicious, and upon closer reflection, this was indeed the case.

If we truly anger Tianyan, what has come today will not be an honor guard, but officers and soldiers.

The little thing he did wasn't even worth Governor Yao's time to handle, let alone alarm the imperial court.

etc!

Governor Yao?

That old man had always wanted to become an official; he might even have been the one who recommended him to the emperor!

Seeing that Sun Jian had fallen into deep thought again, Old Jiang continued, "I just went to the hillside and saw that the procession included eunuchs from the imperial court, imperial envoys from the Hanlin Academy, and soldiers—a grand procession of dozens of people! Even Magistrate Wang and my uncle were mixed in. They must have arrived at the village entrance by now!"

"Magistrate Wang has come too?"

"Yes! That's why I told you it could only be good news, not bad news!"

Upon hearing that Magistrate Wang had also come, Sun Jian finally dispelled his concerns.

Given his relationship with Magistrate Wang, if it were something bad, Magistrate Wang would definitely have found a way to inform him in advance.

It seems I was overthinking things; it was probably Governor Yao who recommended me for this job.

"You'd better get ready to receive the imperial decree."

Sun Jian nodded heavily, then turned and went back into the house.

"Congratulations, my lord."

Gu Zijian and Chu Qingcheng were already standing at the door, their faces beaming with joy.

"What's there to congratulate? Even becoming an official isn't necessarily a good thing."

"Besides, my first batch of potatoes has just been harvested, and the new workshop has started operating. What kind of official position would I be in at this time?"

"What about my security team? What about the other teams?"

“That old tyrant Governor Yao, I’ve already told him I don’t want to be an official, but he insists on doing it this way.”

Sun Jian sighed softly and reluctantly began to wash up.

"My lord, this matter cannot be blamed on Lord Yao. Think about it, as the governor of a prefecture, he is in charge of both military and political affairs. If someone as important as you had not recommended you under his rule, then a major incident would have occurred."

Gu Zijian analyzed the situation for Sun Jian from the side.

"Yes, my lord, what Sister Zijian said is right. Whether you agree or not, recommending great talents to the court is Lord Yao's duty. Otherwise, he would be committing the crime of deceiving the emperor."

“We can grow potatoes in Kyoto, and we can reopen the workshops. None of that matters.”

Chu Qingcheng muttered to herself.

“Our husband… is truly… different from ordinary people. Isn’t this what ordinary people dream of their whole lives? Why does our husband seem a little unhappy?”

Zhou Wan'er, who hadn't spoken for many days, stepped forward at this moment.

"Ha, in my opinion, that Governor Yao is no good either. What's so good about being an official? It's all about deceit and infighting. The court is so chaotic. If you recommend him to the court, you might lose your life in no time."

Although Zhou Wan'er said this, she was actually very worried about Sun Jian.

It wasn't that she didn't want Sun Jian to become an official and bring glory to the family; she just didn't want him to join the great cause so quickly.

But what could she do if she didn't want to?

My worst fears have come true...

Zhou Wan'er was well aware of Sun Jian's abilities. If such a person joined the Great Khanate, the Great Zhou, Great Xia, and even the Great Song would never have a peaceful day again.

"Sister, how can you say that? Your husband is so capable, he will surely turn bad luck into good and rise to great heights."

For the first time, Gu Zijian felt displeased with Zhou Wan'er's words.

"Yes, Sister Wan'er, the factional strife in the court is indeed terrible, but becoming a politician is ultimately a good thing. We should be happy for the Prime Minister."

"Tch, you guys are having fun, but I'm not happy at all."

"Let him go if he wants, whatever."

Zhou Wan'er pretended to be indifferent, shrugged, turned around and walked to the side room, no longer arguing with the two women.

Sun Jian saw all of this and could roughly guess the reason for Zhou Wan'er's emotional fluctuations.

But at the moment, Sun Jian had no other choice.

Originally, I wanted to play it safe and wait for the right time to take the next step, but things don't always go as planned.

Are we to disobey the imperial decree immediately?

Right now, we have neither soldiers nor money.

Where will we go after disobeying the imperial decree? Will we go to the Great Zhou with Zhou Wan'er?

This is absolutely impossible right now.

It could be mistaken for disobeying orders and defecting to the enemy. The million-strong border army is not to be trifled with.

He could only take it one step at a time. Sun Jian wasn't particularly averse to being an official; he just disliked being constrained.

Sun Jian had just finished washing his face in the courtyard when Zhou Wan'er's voice rang out behind him again.

"Are you...are you sure you want to go and receive the imperial decree?"

Sun Jian turned his head and saw Zhou Wan'er standing there with a complicated expression, while Gu Zijian and Chu Qingcheng were not beside her...